WotC later decided Elf is a creature race, and barbarian is an occupation.
jfre81
★★★★☆ (4.0/5.0)(1 vote)
Solid two-drop creature sideboard option vs. blue, at worst.
JaceIsAwesome
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.0/5.0)
He's an ELFFF. But who plays red elves..? :(
herpdaderp
★★★★☆ (4.8/5.0)(2 votes)
Elves can't grow beards? Can they?
Equinox523
★★★★★ (5.0/5.0)(1 vote)
@JaceIsAwesome: I hear its cousin Bloodbraid Elf is pretty popular.
As for this card itself, it's a part of Invasion's cycle of 2-mana friendly color gold common creatures, all of which had protection from their shared enemy color:
In terms of usefulness, it's probably at the bottom of the pack. Its protection is arguably the least valuable, considering it does nothing to hose countermagic, which is one of blue's most powerful tools. There is really only one card that boosts barbarians - Lovisa Coldeyes - and there are many, many superior elves at 2 or less mana.
Manite
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.0/5.0)
He eats Fish for breakfast.
TheWrathofShane
☆☆☆☆☆ (0.0/5.0)
Blue's top answer to deal with creatures is counterspell, and rarely is there mono blue decks. At least he bypass's blue walls and immune to bounce spells and mind control / tapper auras.
3.5/5, strong answer to mono blue when it comes up.
Believe it or not, this saw a lot of standard tournament play in the Fires of Yavimaya-based aggro decks of the era.
In a particularly-legendary piece of lore, the local price of this card shot up to $5+ in the Orlando Florida area during the Nationals tournament in 2001, due to it being the only way for Fires decks to consistently defeat suddenly-popular blue prison decks with Static Orb and Opposition.
Magic needs a better chronicler of history. Who would ever think that some of the best players in Magic history paid $5 for this lowly limited-filler card? It really is awesome and beautiful how Standard and Legacy evolve between seasons.
Comments (13)
With better creature types.
Oracle- Elf Barbarian
Seems like nitpicking to me, but look at Festering Goblin, then look at Blackcleave Goblin.
WotC later decided Elf is a creature race, and barbarian is an occupation.
As for this card itself, it's a part of Invasion's cycle of 2-mana friendly color gold common creatures, all of which had protection from their shared enemy color:
Galina's Knight -
Llanowar Knight -
Shivan Zombie -
Vodalian Zombie -
Yavimaya Barbarian -
Apocalypse, two sets later, released an interesting cycle of 2-mana enemy color gold common creatures, all of which had different abilities:
Gaea's Skyfolk -
Goblin Legionnaire -
Llanowar Dead -
Putrid Warrior -
Razorfin Hunter -
In terms of usefulness, it's probably at the bottom of the pack. Its protection is arguably the least valuable, considering it does nothing to hose countermagic, which is one of blue's most powerful tools. There is really only one card that boosts barbarians - Lovisa Coldeyes - and there are many, many superior elves at 2 or less mana.
3.5/5, strong answer to mono blue when it comes up.
kryptnyt: also mondronen shaman/ulvenwald mystics.
In a particularly-legendary piece of lore, the local price of this card shot up to $5+ in the Orlando Florida area during the Nationals tournament in 2001, due to it being the only way for Fires decks to consistently defeat suddenly-popular blue prison decks with Static Orb and Opposition.
Magic needs a better chronicler of history. Who would ever think that some of the best players in Magic history paid $5 for this lowly limited-filler card? It really is awesome and beautiful how Standard and Legacy evolve between seasons.
http://classic.magictraders.com/ubb/Forum10/HTML/000317.html